What Dreams May Come
by Rebecca Cage
Summary: A short fic that I wrote on what I believe happened after the events in the episode Chimera. I hope you enjoy this ficcie!
1. Default Chapter

What Dreams May Come  
  
Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Stargate SG-1 or related characters. As fun  
as it would be if I did, they are owned by the creative minds at MGM.  
  
Chapter 1: After The Fact  
  
Daniel Jackson sat next to the infirmary bed, watching as Sarah slept peacefully. It had been barely over an hour since the Tok'ra had managed to successfully remove the Goa'uld Osiris from Sarah's body. Daniel had seen this happen before to people he cared about and he was determined to be there for Sarah when she awoke and realized what had happened. He was extremely tired from his poor sleep over the past couple of days caused by the disturbing dreams brought on by the Goa'uld probe device, in fact he was so tired he figured he was bordering on total exhaustion, but he was determined that he wasn't going to rest until he had taken care of Sarah. Just then, she stirred and opened her eyes.  
"It's okay. You're safe now." Daniel said softly.  
"Daniel?" Sarah asked, slightly confused because she didn't have any idea where she was.  
"I'm here. You're all right."  
"I'm so sorry."  
"Shh. It's not your fault." Daniel whispered as he took Sarah in his arms and held her close to him.  
"I couldn't stop it." Sarah cried.  
"I'm going to get you through this. You don't have to be afraid anymore. That is a promise." Daniel said soothingly as he rocked Sarah gently, her tears soaking into his jacket. Sarah sobbed in his arms for a long time, letting herself go because of the knowledge that Daniel was here with her and for the first time in however long, she was finally safe. She truly believed now that no one could harm her.  
Thirty minutes later, Dr. Janet Fraiser walked into the infirmary to check on Sarah. She wasn't at all surprised to find Daniel sitting at her bedside, holding her hand and talking to her. She approached the two and smiled.  
"Hey. How's she doing?"  
"I'm doing much better. Thank you so much for helping me after my ordeal." Sarah smiled gratefully as Janet examined her.  
"You're welcome. I believe I have some good news for you. There's nothing wrong with you so I see no reason to keep you in the infirmary any longer." Janet said happily.  
"I was wondering, Janet, could I take her off the base and back to my house. I really don't want to leave here so I'd prefer to take her home with me if I could so I can keep an eye on her tonight." Daniel asked.  
"Of course. General Hammond said that since she has been separated from the Goa'uld that was inside of her, there is no security risk if she were to leave the base. Take her home with you but she needs to get some rest. For that matter so do you."  
"Okay. Thanks a lot. Does that sound okay to you, Sarah?"  
"I think that sounds like a great idea, Daniel. I don't want to be by myself and I can't think of anywhere else I would feel safer staying tonight than at your house with you." Sarah whispered as she leaned into Daniel's arms.  
"All right. Let's go home. I just need to stop by Jack's office for a minute and then we'll head out." Daniel smiled as he took Sarah by the hand and led her out of the infirmary.  
  
A few minutes later, Daniel and Sarah appeared in Jack's office and found him and Sam both there. The two looked up and smiled when they noticed the others standing in the doorway.  
"Hey, Daniel. How's everything going?" Jack grinned.  
"Hi, Jack. Hi, Sam. Everything's fine. Actually, Sarah and I are about to leave because she was cleared to leave the base and I'm going to take her home with me tonight so I can keep an eye on her and she'll feel safe. I just wanted to come here first and thank you for what you did. If it hadn't been for you, Sarah would still be under Osiris' control and I could very well be dead. I owe you, Jack. All of you." Daniel said.  
"You don't owe anybody anything. We just did what you would have done for any one of us. Now you guys get out of here and go get some sleep. That's a direct order."  
"Sure, we're about to do that. I'm so tired I'll probably have a hard time coming back in the morning."  
"Actually, Daniel, you don't have to. General Hammond put us on stand down for the rest of the week. You have five whole days to relax." Sam informed him.  
"That's good. Now I don't have to worry about leaving Sarah alone." Daniel smiled at the news.  
"You can also catch up on the sleep you've lost." Sarah added as Daniel hugged her to him.  
"All right, you two. Get going. Shoo! I'll give you a call in the morning, Daniel." Jack laughed.  
"Okay. We're just going to go now. Please thank Teal'c for me."  
"We will. Goodnight." Sam said quietly as Daniel and Sarah turned and walked out of the office.  
  
Thirty minutes later, Daniel pulled his car into his driveway and got out and helping Sarah out of the car, walked her into his living room. Once inside, Sarah looked around and took a moment to orient herself with her surroundings.  
"You have a nice place. You've done very well for yourself, Daniel."  
"Thanks. I do the best I can." Daniel said.  
"You always were very modest. I guess some things never change." Sarah laughed brightly.  
"I'm so glad you're okay. It's so good to have you back in my life again."  
"I'm glad I'm here. It would mean so much to me if we could try to start our relationship again. I have a feeling that things could be different."  
"Nothing would please me more. I've missed you very much." Daniel whispered as he pulled Sarah into his arms and kissed her deeply.  
As the couple stood in the living room, entangled in each other's arms, Daniel couldn't help but think that this scenario had been a blessing in disguise because for the first time in what seemed like forever, things in his life were all perfect. 


	2. A Night of Comfort

Chapter 2: A Night of Comfort  
  
For the longest time, Daniel and Sarah sat in the living room, just enjoying each other's company. They were sitting together on the couch, Sarah settled in Daniel's arms, taking advantage of the time, each reveling in their reunion in their own way. Daniel made a promise to himself that as long as he was living, he was going to make sure that Sarah was safe and that no one would ever hurt her again.  
"Are you hungry, Daniel?"  
"Yeah, I guess I am a little hungry." Daniel said as his stomach rumbled loudly, causing Sarah to laugh brightly.  
"Good. I think I'll just go in the kitchen and make us some sandwiches for dinner."  
"Okay. I'll give you a hand."  
"Nope. Sorry. This is my department for this evening. You just stay right here and relax. I won't be long, I promise." Sarah whispered, gently pushing Daniel back on the couch as she kissed him.  
Daniel sat there on the couch for a long moment, thinking about the situation that he was in and what he had just experienced.  
"I can't believe that after the hell that Sarah has been through, the only thing she seems to be worried about is how exhausted I am. She's exactly the way I remember her. I'm just so grateful to have another chance at our relationship." Daniel thought to himself as he closed his eyes and allowed himself to relax.  
  
Five minutes later, Sarah walked back into the living room with club sandwiches and some lemonade for them to have for dinner and smiled at the sight that greeted her. Daniel was dozing on the couch, having slid into slumber as he was thinking. Sarah walked over and placed the food and drinks down quietly on the coffee table before sitting down beside Daniel.  
"Daniel? Do you still want some dinner?" Sarah whispered, shaking Daniel's shoulder gently.  
"Hmm? Yeah. Sorry, I guess I must have dozed off for a minute. This looks great." Daniel yawned.  
"I made us some club sandwiches and lemonade. Knowing you, you haven't eaten in over a day. You've got to be starving."  
"You still know me better than I know myself don't you."  
"I pride myself on that ability." Sarah beamed.  
As they were eating their dinner, Daniel realized just how lucky he was to have Sarah back in his life again and to have three of the best friends anyone could ask for to help him make this all happen.  
"You seem to be pretty deep in thought."  
"Yeah. I was actually thinking about everything that has gone on over the past couple of days. It's because I'm so exhausted. When I get really overtired, my mind tends to wander on me. I guess that's what happens when you haven't had a good night's sleep in three days." Daniel said, closing his eyes.  
"Well, it's over now and everything is fine. Hopefully tonight you'll sleep well. But for now, why don't we take in some television." Sarah suggested as she pulled Daniel against her to where his head was resting on her lap.  
"That sounds like a pretty good idea. Let's see what we have good to watch."  
After a few minutes of channel surfing, they finally decided on a variety show that they wanted to watch and took advantage of the opportunity to relax.  
"I don't know if my lying down like this is the best idea at the moment."  
"Why not?"  
"Because I'm so exhausted that it's making me a little sleepy. I know this may sound a little strange but I'm almost afraid to fall asleep because I have this irrational fear that I'll wake up and this will all be a dream."  
"It's okay. I can assure you, though, that this is no dream. I'm really here and right now, I can't think of anywhere else I would rather be. You already said you haven't slept well for the past few days and I can tell you're worn out. So just close your eyes and go to sleep for a little while. I promise that I'll be right here when you wake up." Sarah whispered soothingly as she ran her fingers through Daniel's hair in an attempt to relax him.  
Given his recent poor sleep, it didn't take long for Daniel to begin feeling overwhelmed with sleepiness. He tried to distract himself from it but even this was a vain effort and eventually his eyes began growing heavy. To compound this was the fact that Sarah had begun humming a soft tune as she continued to gently massage his head. This was all so relaxing that after a few minutes, Daniel was overcome by his exhaustion, allowing his eyes to slide closed as he drifted into a very deep sleep that was mercifully dreamless.  
Fifteen minutes later, Sarah pulled her attention away from the television and was greeted by the sound of soft, deep breathing. She smiled as she looked down and noticed that her efforts had been successful and Daniel was sleeping soundly with his head resting on her lap. As she carefully removed his glasses, Sarah could easily remember the numerous times she had come to check on him and found him sleeping on his desk, the victim of exhaustion. It was with this thought that Sarah realized just how calm and peaceful Daniel looked now as he slept. Then she turned her attention back to the television, soon becoming defeated by her own exhaustion as she leaned her head back against the couch and fell asleep as well.  
  
It was about midnight when Daniel next awoke. He looked around for a moment, slightly disoriented, before realizing he was in his living room and he must have fallen asleep on the couch. The television was still on and he wondered if Sarah was still watching it. Then he looked up and noticed that she had fallen asleep and had her head resting on the back of the couch. Daniel smiled at this as he slowly sat up, realizing how much Sarah looked like an angel as she was sleeping there. So different from the way she had looked several hours before when she was still overtaken by Osiris.  
"Sarah. Wake up. It's late." Daniel whispered gently in Sarah's ear, shaking her shoulder lightly.  
"Hmm. Daniel? I guess I fell asleep too." Sarah said sleepily as Daniel took her hand and helped her up off the couch.  
"Yeah. We both need to go to bed and get a good night's sleep. Come on, I'll set up my guest room for you."  
  
A few minutes later, Daniel had set up the bed in the guest room for Sarah, gave her a kiss and left her to get ready for bed. Once in his own room, Daniel took off his shirt and then lay down on his bed intending to think some things through for a little while. However, he was still so exhausted that he covered himself with the blankets and fell into a sound sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.  
An hour later, Sarah was still awake and trying to fall asleep. She couldn't help but think about all of the pain that she had caused because of what had happened to her. After a few more minutes, Sarah decided that she might as well go and check on Daniel.  
Sarah approached Daniel's bedroom and quietly opened the door. She found him sleeping there just as she had expected but it made her feel better to know that she could no longer harm him as he slept. In fact, Daniel was sleeping so soundly that he hadn't even stirred when Sarah had entered the room and as she stood looking down on him. As she bent and placed a soft kiss on his forehead, however, Daniel opened his eyes and looked at her in confusion.  
"Sarah?" Daniel muttered sleepily.  
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. I just couldn't get to sleep and I thought I would come and check on you."  
"It's okay. Are you all right?"  
"I can't stop thinking about all of the things that I did and all of the people that I hurt over these past couple of years. The thing that is the most upsetting is the fact that I hurt you. I never meant to cause you pain and I am so sorry for that." Sarah whispered as she began to cry.  
"Hey. Come here." Daniel said softly as he took Sarah's hand and eased her onto the bed to sit next to him, taking her in his arms. "Shh. It's okay. I know that you had no control over what you were doing. I've seen first hand what the Goa'uld can do to a person. I don't blame you at all and you shouldn't blame yourself for something that you couldn't control. What matters is that you're free now and nothing is ever going to hurt you again. I will keep you safe, Sarah. I promise."  
"Will I ever stop feeling like this?"  
"The feelings that you're having right now will go away in time. I've seen this before and you won't feel like this forever. But you're going to get through this. You have a lot of people that are going to do everything we can to assure that."  
"Thank you. I feel much better now. I'm going to go back to my room and let you go back to sleep." Sarah smiled as she tried to stand up but Daniel grasped her arm and held her.  
"I have a better idea. Why don't you stay here with me for a little while and let me hold you. That way I'll be able to make sure that you're okay." Daniel whispered. He then allowed Sarah to settle in and lay down beside her and held her in his arms.  
Sarah rested in Daniel's arms and cherished the feeling of once again having his arms around her. It was at this point that she knew she was safe and no harm would come to her. With this knowledge, she snuggled closer against Daniel, closed her eyes and fell asleep with her head on his shoulder.  
Daniel listened as Sarah's breathing grew deeper, a sure sign that she had fallen asleep. Turning carefully onto his side, he placed a gentle kiss on her cheek and adjusted the blanket over her. Daniel lay like this for a long time, just watching Sarah sleep and absorbing the knowledge that she was safe, until his own fatigue found him again and his eyes grew heavy. Then he rested his head on the soft pillow, allowed his eyes to slide closed and drifted back to his own dreamless oblivion. The last thought that Daniel had before his consciousness completely left him was that things really were going to be okay and for once, things seemed to be right in his world. 


	3. Waking to Love

Chapter 3: Waking to Love  
  
The next morning, Sarah was the first to wake. She opened her eyes and was momentarily confused because she wasn't sure where she was. That is, until she felt a strong arm around her waist and gently turned to her left to see Daniel sleeping next to her. She thought for a moment and remembered the night before when she had come to check on Daniel and he had awakened to comfort her when she cried through her guilt of all she had done. Then he had just wanted to hold her for a while and she had fallen asleep in his arms. Sarah reached up and gently stroked Daniel's face with her hand, smiling when he didn't stir. She knew that the ordeal the Goa'uld Osiris had put Daniel through over the past days had completely exhausted him and she was glad that he was finally getting a decent sleep and it warmed her heart to see the peaceful expression on his face.  
"I'm glad that Daniel's finally getting a good sound sleep. His ordeal left him completely exhausted. I think I'll go out into the kitchen and make some breakfast so I don't wake Daniel. I should let him sleep for a little while longer. He really needs his rest." Sarah thought as she maneuvered herself out of Daniel's arms, careful not to disturb him, and headed into the kitchen to make breakfast.  
  
Two hours later, Daniel was awakened by the smells coming from his kitchen. He opened his eyes and looked around the room. After taking a moment to remember what had happened the night before, Daniel was momentarily alarmed when he noticed that Sarah was no longer at his side.  
"Okay, calm down. I know I'm not dreaming this whole thing because my kitchen doesn't start cooking breakfast by itself. I guess Sarah woke up earlier and decided she didn't want to wake me and went to make breakfast." Daniel thought as he climbed out of bed and made his way into the kitchen.  
Sarah was in the kitchen finishing up making breakfast when she heard quiet footsteps behind her and then felt Daniel's arms wrap around her waist. She turned her head and kissed him gently.  
"Good morning." Sarah smiled.  
"Morning, beautiful lady." Daniel teased as he continued to hold her tightly.  
"Did you sleep well?"  
"Yeah. I guess I didn't realize how exhausted I really was. Last night I was so tired it wouldn't have taken much to put me out for a week."  
"That's exactly why I decided to come in here on my own to make breakfast for us. When I woke up you seemed to be sleeping so peacefully that I couldn't bring myself to disturb you."  
"Well, thank you. You have no idea just how much I needed to get a good night's sleep. I was beginning to feel extremely run down. In fact, last night I was so tired that all I really had to do was close my eyes and my body took over from there."  
"I'm not surprised seeing all that you've been through over the past several days. I'm glad to see that you seem to be much more rested." Sarah smiled, giggling lightly as Daniel wrapped his arms around her waist.  
"I feel more rested than I've felt in over a week. During the past few days I've been so run down that when I was at work at the SGC I could hardly function. Actually, one morning Sam and Teal'c came to the commissary to have breakfast with me and found me sleeping with my head on the table. I woke up long enough to have a short conversation with them about the dreams I was having and then I put my head back down on the table and ended up sleeping in the commissary for the better part of two hours until someone finally found me there."  
"I wish there was something that I could have done to stop what Osiris was doing to you, Daniel. I always thought myself to be a strong person but I guess this whole situation proves that I'm not as strong as I believed I was."  
"Sarah, I want you to listen to me. You are one of the strongest people I know. I don't know of many people who could have survived being the host to a Goa'uld like that. Most people would have died long before the symbiote was able to be removed and if they managed to survive that long would have surely died soon after. So don't ever doubt your strength. Another thing that I always want you to remember is that what Osiris did to me was not your fault. When a Goa'uld takes a host, the symbiote completely takes over and the host has absolutely no control. The Tok'ra are the only exception to that rule. You are going to get through this and I'm going to do everything I possibly can to help you. That is a promise." Daniel whispered reassuringly.  
"I know. It's just hard. But right now, I think we should have some breakfast."  
"I don't know when I've heard a better idea."  
As Daniel and Sarah sat at the kitchen table sharing the breakfast that she had prepared, Daniel found that he couldn't stop thinking about how lucky he was to have a second chance. For him, these opportunities to change things and right past wrongs were very rare indeed. This morning, as he sat drinking his coffee with Sarah smiling at him from across the table, Daniel corrected himself on the thought he had last night. In this moment, all things were right in Daniel Jackson's world. He silently vowed to himself at that point that he was going to do everything in his power to make sure that they stayed that way. 


End file.
